Automatic signal for railways



UNITED STATES PATENT @rrrcn.

DAVID VINT ON, JR, AND FRANK HENRY VINTON, OF VVILLIAMSBURG, MICHIGAN.

AUTOMATIC SIGNAL FOR RAILWAY-S.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 414,462, dated November5, 1889.

Application filed February 25, 1889- Srial No. 301,088. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, DAVID VINTON, Jr., and FRANK HENRY Vmroiv, ofWilliamsburg, in the county of Grand Traverse and State of Michigan,have invented a new and Improved Railroad-Signal, of which the followingis a full, clear, and exact description.

Our invention relates to signaling apparatus to assure safety of trains,more particularly those trains running on single-track railways, theinvention being designed for use in railroads where crossed by otherrailroads or by common roads and at curves and tunnels.

The invention has for its object to provide simple, comparativelyinexpensive, and reliable signaling apparatus of this character usefulby day or at night and operated by or from the pilots oflocomotive-engines moving in either direction along the track.

The invention consists in certain novel features of construction andcombinations of parts of the signaling apparatus, all as hereinafterdescribed and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar letters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a plan view of our improved railroad-signal with adjacentportion of a railway-track and the pilot of a locomotiveengine indicatedin dotted lines. Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof, the road-bed beingin vertical section. Fig. 3 is a detail plan view with the mainsignal-post in horizontal section on the line a: as in Fig. 2, anddrawn'to a little larger scale than like parts are shown in Figs. 1 and2. Fig. at is a transverse sectional elevation taken on the line 3 y inFig. 1, the signal post and shaft being partly broken away. Fig. 5 is anenlarged sectional side view of one of the signal trip-wheels and itsbox or casing, and Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail plan view of one of thesignal-rod-lever connections.

The signal proper consists of a lantern A, having red and greenbulls-eyes or glasses set in opposing pairs in its side walls and fixedto a vertical shaft B, journaled in arms 0 o, projecting from a post orupright C, set at one side of a railway-track D, on which trains of carswillbe run, the dotted lines at E in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawingsindicating the pilot or cow-catcher of one of the locomofive-enginessupposed to run on the track. Signal boards or plates at a a, set atright angles to each other and painted red and green at facescorresponding to the red and green bulls-eyes of the lantern,willpreferably be held to the shaft B under the lantern, so as 'to turn one-quarter around and back again with the lantern, the lantern beingdesigned for night service and the boards for day use, as will readilybe understood.

To the signalsh aft B is fixed a pulley, wheel, or drum F, around whichis wound a cord g, the ends of which extend in opposite directions andare secured to the levers GH, which are fulcrumed at g h to a barc,bolted to the post C, and the other ends of these levers are pivotedto opposite end parts of a bar I, which is fitted to slide lengthwise ofthe railway-track on the post 0 and between guides 0 fixed thereto, thebars a and I being arranged at opposite sides or faces of the post, sothat the levers G H project laterally from the track, as most clearlyshown in Figs. 1, 3, and 4; of the drawings. With this construction itis obvious that as the bar I is moved endwise in opposite directions theright distance the signal will be turned onequarter around in reversedirections, so as to display the green and red lights or boardsalternately to the engineers of approaching trains or to personsapproaching on roads crossing the railway-tracks.

To one end of the bar I is connected one end of a rod J, preferably madeof metal gaspipes joined together, and the other end of this rod isconnected to one forked end of a lever K, which is fulcrumed about atits cen= ter to any suitable post, bed-plate, or support it, set at oneside of the railwaytrack and preferably about two or three hundred feetfrom the signal-post (J. The other end of the bar I is connected by arod J, like the one J, to one forked end of a lever L, like the one K,and supported on a bed-plate Z, to whichit is pivoted about at itscenter. A rod M, also made of joined lengths of gas-pipe, connects theother forked end of the lever K with a downWardly-proj ecting lug a,fixed to a drum or wheel N, journaled to and in a suitable box or case'n, set at the side of the railway-track at any required distance fromthe signal-post C and lever K, and a like rod M connects the otherforked end of the lever L with the end of an upwardly-projecting lug 0,fixed to a drum or Wheel 0, like the one N, and journaled to and in abox or casing set near the track D at the otherside of the signal andlever L and at any required distance therefrom. The drum N is providedwith two curved arms P P, and the drum 0 is provided with two curvedarms R R, all four arms being adapted to be struck by the heel of theengine-pilot only as a train approaches and passes the signal fromeither direction, and as hereinafter more fully explained. The gas-piperods J J M M are affected less by changes of temperature than cords,wires, or

chains would be. Consequently we employ these rods to assure safeworking of the signal.

The distance between the two drums N 0 may be one thousand feet, (moreor less,) and that portion of the railway-track between the drums may bea curve of larger or smaller radius, and at which the signal willprevent collision of trains running on a single track,

or the track between the drums may be either straight or curved and thesignal may be set at or near the crossing of an ordinary roadway oranother railway to warn vehicles off the track should a train beapproaching. As many of the signals Aand operating mechanism therefor,substantially as above described, may be set up along a line of railwaytion of the arrow 1 in Figs. 1 and 2 of the.

, drawings, the engine-pilot E would lower the arm P, and thereby turnthe drum N and draw on the rod M and push the rod J and bar I forward,and thereby actuate the levers G H, the cord or cable g, and the drum Fand shaft B to turn the signal A a one-quarter around to display the redor danger lights or boards, and simultaneously with this movement of thesignal the bar I, by pushing on the rod J and drawing 011 the rod M,will also turn the drum 0 to reverse the positions of the arms R R, orlower the arm R and raise the arm R, so that as the train after havingpassed by the signal reaches the drum 0 the engine-pilot will strike andlower the arm R of the drum 0, and thereby draw on the rod M and pushbackward on the rod J and bar I to actuate the levers, cord or cable,

and pulley at the signal to turn it back onequarter revolution or resetit as at first, or so i that it presents the green or safety lights orboards to a following train or to a train approaching the signal fromthe opposite direcltion. It will be remembered that as the signal wasreset to safety the drum-arms R P would both be raised again to theirfirst-described positions. Should the same train back down the track oranother train now approach the signal in direction of the arrow 2 inFigs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the arm R of the drum 0 would first bedepressed to set the signal to show a red light or board or danger, andafter the train had passed the signal the raised arm P would next belowered to return the signal to the green or safety position again;hence from whichever direction a train may approach the signal, whethermoving forward or backward along the track, the signal will beautomatically shifted to danger and safety alternately, and in ampletime to prevent collisions on the track of trains moving in eitherdirection.

In using the signal to warn vehicles from road-crossings of the trackthe signal lights and boards will show red and green or danger andsafety alternately from or along the cross-road, as will readily beunderstood.

Having thus described our invention, what We claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination, in a railroad signaling apparatus, of a post orsupport, a revoluble signal held thereto, a wheel or drum on thesignal-shaft, two levers fulcrumed to the post or a bar held thereto, acord or cable con nected at each end to the levers and wound around thewheel or drum, a sliding bar pivoted to the other ends of the levers,and rod, cord, or wire connections leading each Way from the sliding barand adapted for operation by trip devices actuated by passing trains,substantially as herein set forth.

2. The combination, in a railroad signaling apparatus, of I a post orsupport, a revoluble signal held thereto, a wheel or drum on thesignal-shaft, two levers fulcrumed to the post or a bar held thereto, acord connected at its ends to the levers and woun d around the wheel ordrum, a sliding bar pivoted to the other ends of the levers, tworock-levers, one fulcrumed to a support at each side of the signal, rodsconnecting opposite ends of the sliding bar to one end of bothrock-levers, a drum or wheel journaled next the railwaytrack at one sideof the signal and provided with two arms adapted for depression by anengine-pilot, and provided also with a pendent arm, a rod connectingsaid arm to one of the rock-levers, another drum or Wheel journaled nextthe railwaytrack at the other side of the signal and provided with twoarms adapted for depression by an engine-pilot, and provided also withan upwardly-extending arm, and a rod connecting this arm to the other ofthe two rock-levers, all arranged for operation substantially asdescribed, for the purposes set forth.

3. The combination, in a railroad signaling apparatus, of a post O, arevolnble signal, as B A a, journaled thereto, a wheel F on thesignal-shaft B, two levers G H, fiileriiined to the post or a bar heldthereto, cord or cable g, Wound around the Wheel F and connected to thelevers G H, respectively, and asliding her I, pivoted to the levers G IIand adapted for connection to trip devices operative by a passing train,substantially as herein set forth.

4. The combination, in a railroad signaling apparatus, of a post 0, 2trevoluble signal, as B A a, jonrna-led thereto, at drum or Wheel F onthe signahshaft, two levers G H, fulcrumed to the post or ii bar heldthereto, a cord g, connected to one end of these levers and wound ontothe drum or wheel, a sliding hm I, pivoted to the other ends of thelevers, tivo rock-levers K L, one fiilerumed at each side of the signal,rods J J connecting opposite ends of the bar I to one end of both leversK L, a drum N, jeurnaled next the railway-track at one side of thesignal and provided with two arms P P and a pendent arm n, a rod hi,connecting said arm to the rock-lever K, another drum 0, journaled nextthe track at the other side of the signal and provided with two arms R Rand an arm 0, and a rod con necting this arm to the roclelever L, allconstructed and arranged for operation substantially described, for thepurposes set forth.

DAVID VINTOX, JR. FRANK HENRY VINTON.

Witnesses:

J. H. MONROE, O. P. GARYER.

